The Berliners are back, baby. Brought in tow with the duo’s latest far-ranging electronic pursuit, Monkeytown, are the stylings of regular contributor Thom Yorke, the crazy-good rapper Busdriver, and other noteworthy musicians committed to mesmerize you. The majority of the album excels at locking you in with layered sound but unfortunately some lulls preclude a totally possessing.

Though largely danceable, the album is rarely dancey: a gloominess shrouds several of the tracks. The uptempo yet cold “Shipwreck” features a melancholic Thom Yorke on loop: “You choke/ You choke/ You die/ You choke.” It could easily be snuck onto a Radiohead mixtape. “Berlin,” a sometimes glitchy and otherwise smooth grooving nevertheless troubles as Miss Platnum’s lines of a stalled life match a ticking clock sample. And who could deny the darkwave invocation “Green Light Go” with its Robert Smith-esque vocals and Depeche Mode beat as an ode to numbing instruction.

Fortunately, there are moments of energy and vigor. “War Cry” builds off of its chanting sample to eventually provoke headbanging. Dissimilarly, “Evil Twin” gets you moving at the onset with its wicked and heavy house beat. Then, of course, is the bizarrely included but brilliantly executed “Pretentious Friends” featuring the flow of Busdriver who came out of, uh, Bumblefuck for all I know.

But there are also duds. “German Clap” is pretty cheesy and never amounts to much while “Grillwalker” ventures too close to ambient house without introducing any interesting mixing to prevent boredom. And then there’s “Humanized” which I find straight up confusing: how could rap ever make me this sleepy?

No question, some outstanding work went into Monkeytown, but a few of its songs are just tepid.

3.5 / 5

Modeselektor “Shipwreck” with Thom Yorke (MONKEYTOWN015) OUT SEP 30 by Modeselektor

Modeselektor “Grillwalker” (MONKEYTOWN015) OUT SEP 30 by Modeselektor

Modeselektor “This” with Thom Yorke (MONKEYTOWN015) OUT SEP 30 by Modeselektor